


Nothing Changes but the Faces, the Names, and the Trends

by Morgawse



Series: The bitter then the sweet [4]
Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: Blow Jobs, Domestic Fluff, Hand Jobs, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Semi-Public Sex, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-09
Updated: 2018-03-09
Packaged: 2019-03-28 17:43:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13909023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morgawse/pseuds/Morgawse
Summary: Gerard is all flustered.  He’s been invited to a high school reunion.  Will anything have changed? Can his husband Frank persuade him that everything they have together means it has changed for Gerard?  Will the daemon from his past be there? And, why does Gerard suddenly feel the need to go to the nurse’s station?





	Nothing Changes but the Faces, the Names, and the Trends

**Author's Note:**

> So, in keeping my promise to MyChemicalFallOutBoyRomance, here's a little piece of married Frerard for you to soothe those readers who found "It's too late to try. Someday, I'll smile and say goodbye" a smidgen dark! :)
> 
> Yes, for the eagle eyed of you the title is from Bowling for Soup - High School Never Ends. Do BFS lyrics turn up in the final Sweet fic - you'll have to wait to find out!
> 
> I think I found all the typos and errors - if not apologies. 
> 
> A couple of other points:  
> 1) Sweet Pea gets a mention in here - I had the idea for this fic just before Frank posted about her passing, so I decided to keep her in as a tribute, even though it took a while to get here. RIP Sweet Pea.  
> 2) There is a tiny bit of angst in here from Gerard's past with some mention of non-consenual stuff, but its not explicit in any way, just angsty conversation. Guess who else from the character list is involved in that part! ;)
> 
> There are 2 album titles from an ancient British glam rock / new wave band hidden in this fic, I will gift one of the final two parts of this series to you if you can tell me who they are.

Ugh, a high school reunion. Not exactly what constituted a good night out for Gerard. Frank wasn’t exactly keen either, but it was what you did when you reached your thirties wasn’t it? Go and find out what all the other jerks you went to school with had done with their lives.

Gerard had spent his years at Bellville High School either being abused, physically and verbally by both staff and pupils or completely ignored. He’d never worked out which was worse. It hadn’t been any different outside school either, but that was the price you paid for being sensitive and interested in the arts and vampire shit when you grew up in that part of northern New Jersey.

“Gee, if it’s really upsetting you – you don’t have to go. It’s not mandatory or anything.”

“I know, but I am kinda curious.”

“So, are we going or not?” Frank was getting somewhat exasperated with the constant flip flopping that had been going on for a couple of days now over some damn high school reunion. “Oh, and before you answer, I am gonna hold you to whatever you say as your final answer on the subject. Some of us have to get to work you know!”

“Don’t let my insecurities hold you up princess! Just for that, I’m not going to give you an answer till I get back from work,” Gerard smirked as he added, “and that won’t be till really late – stock check at some place south of Trenton. God knows why the local regional manager can’t do it, but hey.”

Frank filled his travel mug with coffee. Blowing his husband a kiss, he headed out the door.

“The little shit!” Frank had taken the last of the coffee. “Ok, Starbucks it is. Come on Sweet Pea, let’s get you to doggy day-care.”

As he left the kitchen, Gerard picked up the invitation to the reunion, frustrated that something so inconsequential was bothering him so much.

*That night*  
Kicking his shoes off at the door, Gerard called out his usual greeting, “Honey, I’m home!” Clichéd, but it had become one of their “things” not long after they moved in together. Silence. He made his way past the living room to the kitchen where dinner was waiting for him to reheat. But no Frank. Creeping quietly back to the living room, he opened the door just enough to peer round it. A massive smile broke out over his face – the two loves of his life were curled up on the couch, fast asleep and both snoring softly. A half-drunk cup of coffee sat on the table, TV still running through an episode of a past series of Gotham. 

Silently he made his way over to the couch. Picking up Sweet Pea, he carried her back to the dog bed she was supposed to be sleeping on. “You know you’re not allowed on the couch! Stop taking advantage of Frank being such a soft touch,” he whispered, scratching her affectionately behind the ears as he laid her down. The dog was the easy one here. What to do about Frank? If he covered him with a blanket and left him there, Frank’s back and neck would be seriously stiff in the morning. Worse he would wake up in the early hours and come to bed then making sure to wake Gerard up in the process. But, if he woke him up now Frank would be seriously grumpy, and the likelihood was that he then wouldn’t want to go back to sleep for hours. That would give Frank the opportunity to keep pestering him about that stupid invite. Cranky Frank either way.

“Choose your pain Gerard!” he muttered weighing up the options – getting sworn at and the third degree now, or disturbed sleep and whining from a husband with a bad back later. He knelt by the couch. Tenderly he caressed the top of Frank’s head murmuring, “Come on sleeping beauty, we need to get you off this couch and into a comfortable bed.” Frank nuzzled up into his husband’s touch, unwilling to open his eyes just yet. Gerard leant in and placed a featherlight kiss on his cheek, before rocking back on his heels. As he rocked back, he gently shook the sleeping man.

“What…What…What the fuck! Oh come on Gee, couldn’t you have just left me. I was really enjoying that nap.”

“I could hear,” Gerard chuckled.

“Gerard Arthur Way, you are a sadistic ass!”

“It’s for your own good. Well, mine too – don’t want you ruining my beauty sleep. Don’t really want to have to massage your back either, all because you insisted on sleeping down here. I could think of far better reasons to give you a massage” he retorted, winking.

Finally giving in to being awake, Frank threw a cushion at Gerard as he sat up. “You eaten yet? I left a plate out for you – it isn’t Cajun either!”

“Wow, Frankie what’s that, a whole month without burning dinner. That must be some sort of record.” Gerard ducked quickly before a playful swat connected with his cheek. “No, I haven’t eaten. I needed to see you first.” He was pleased at the sappy response, knowing Frank would just lap it up.

“Ok, kitchen. I’ll sit with you while you eat. Don’t think I’ve forgotten you owe me an answer about that Belville High School thing!”

Gerard rolled his eyes. He knew Frank wasn’t going to let that go, but he wasn’t entirely persuaded that he had made his mind up yet.

*The evening of the reunion*  
“Babes – we agreed to do this. We even scripted out some shit to say so we don’t stand there looking like awkward teens. Look, don’t forget some of these guys bullied me too when I was a freshman and you guys were seniors.”

Gerard just took another drag on his cigarette, blowing the smoke out of the crack in the car window. This was his third since they had left the house for the reunion. Frank wasn’t going to let this drop. They hadn’t driven all the way from New Providence back here just to sit in a parking lot smoking. Gerard had committed to going, so they would go. He had to find a way to get Gerard out of the car without causing an argument. Not easy to do if Gerard was smoking this much. Looked like he would have to volunteer as designated driver. Maybe that was a good way to start, the promise of some liquid courage to go with the nicotine buzz.

“Let’s go. Bound to be some beer in there. Just to take the edge off. I’ll drive home.”

“Thanks sweetie, but I’m not quite up for it yet.”

“We’ve been through this! I thought curiosity got the better of the doubts?”

“You know what curiosity did to the cat!” Gerard quipped.

“You do know you aren’t a cat, don’t you?”

Gerard playfully punched Frank’s arm “Ass!”

“Ok, so what’s the major malfunction?” A puzzled look flashed across Frank’s face. Gerard wasn’t embarrassed about them, was he? Frank loved their life, maybe it was humdrum and mundane, but it was their life together. He had a good job as a contracts and grant application manager for a biomedical company, which made him feel like he was making a difference. Gerard was successful in his career as a regional manager for a chain of gaming shops. They both played in a band occasionally with Mikey, Ray and Bob. They had Sweet Pea and had even started talking about adding to their family. For Frank there really wasn’t much else in life he wanted.

“No malfunction, just bad memories? What if nothing’s changed?”

Frank rested his hand gently on his husband’s leg, “But honey, everything has changed. You have me. We have our house, our friends, our Sweet Pea. You’re not ashamed of what we have are you?”

“Oh God, no babes. You are the greatest thing to ever happen in my life. But …” His voice tailed off as he realised how ridiculous he was being. “I suppose its not like anyone is a movie star, famous musician, high-profile politician, or multi-millionaire business mogul that I know of. Although, I think there was that one guy that played for the Islanders for a couple of seasons.”

Frank laughed. “Ready?”

“Yeah, there are a couple of beers with my name on them. I think I can hear them calling.”

As they approached the hall, they saw a table with badges on them. “They haven’t done what I think have they?” Gerard’s voice almost rose an octave. “Not yearbook photos!” Yes, that was exactly what they had done. For Gerard having to wear a photo of his chubby teenage self was humiliating. The woman behind the desk did a double take as she handed him the badge.

“Whoa, looks like womankind really lost out there” she joked looking at the two of them with arms around each other’s waist. “The two of you really together? You didn’t strike me as the type Gerard,” she added emphatically.

Gerard could feel Frank bristling at his side. “Didn’t know there was a type,” he spat out striding away from her and stuffing the badge into his back pocket. “Beer me.” As he uttered those words, he dragged Frank in the direction of the makeshift bar.

The two men walked straight up to the bar from where they could ascertain which of Dante’s layers of hell that they had deliberately wandered into. A few faces were instantly recognisable. Others not so much. As they stood at the bar, Gerard with his beer and Frank his soda they had a couple of short “hey, how are you” conversations. Nothing controversial. A few interesting bits of gossip if you were into that sort of thing. One or two remembered Frank. There weren’t any other bad-taste jokes at Gerard and Frank being married. If anyone was surprised that Gerard was gay, or they had any homophobic comments, they kept them to themselves. Gerard was finally beginning to relax into the situation. Sure, people always compared themselves to one another, that was a human failing. In that way the little cliques and groups that people belonged to didn’t really change after high school. Then again, age and a few more knocks from life made most people handle situations differently than when their hormones had been ruling their lives.

That was when, Gerard spied a tall, gangly looking man with straggly black hair. There was no mistaking Bert McCracken. Not many people knew that Gerard and Bert had been anything other than friends, if they had even stopped to consider that the two outcasts would eventually strike up a friendship for moral support. “Hey, babes I think this one might be a little like exorcising ghosts of adolescent sex…..”

“No worries”, Frank interrupted getting that Gerard didn’t want to make talking to Bert any more difficult than it would naturally be. “I’ll make myself scarce. Maybe I’ll go chat up the DJ, he looks like my type!”

Gerard watched Frank walk away. He was grateful that he understood Gerard needed to do this alone, and thankful that Frank wouldn’t be in the line of fire from Bert if things got ugly, as they always had a habit of doing when Gerard was around Bert.

“Hi Bert.”

“Gerard, h-how are you? Haven’t seen you in how long now…”

“Cut the crap Bert, we both know how long its been. You can’t have forgotten I made damn sure to avoid you after you raped me.”

“I-I-I, but you w-wanted me to f-fuck y-you,” Bert stammered.

“No, Bert, I said that was off limits. Everything else was ok, but I wanted my first time to be with someone special.”

“And I w-w-wasn’t?”

“To be honest, I didn’t know how I felt. I was lonely, confused and depressed. You took advantage of that. You took my virginity.”

“W-why didn’t you tell anyone?” Bert asked looking bemused. “Why not c-c-cry r-r-rape?”

“Who would’ve believed me? The two outcast misfits together. Both of us high on drink and drugs. It would have been a he said vs. he said situation. I was also too scared of everyone finding out that I was gay and too weak to either say no or fight someone off.” Gerard was surprised at how calm and self-assured he sounded. He wasn’t feeling either. His heart was pounding. His knees felt like they would buckle under him at any moment. “I didn’t come over here to relive the nightmare. I came to put it behind me and move on with my life.”

“You look like you’ve m-managed that quite well.” Bert nodded at Gerard’s wedding ring.

“On the outside. The scar’s still there – inside.” Gerard scoffed. “What about you?”

“Does, does it look like it,” Bert replied sighing. “I never quite m-managed to escape the d-d-drink and d-d-drugs. I work three j-j-jobs just to k-k-keep afloat. I-I-I always owe ….” His voice tailed off. The failure, shame and pain so achingly evident in his voice, his eyes, his gestures. “N-n-not sure why I c-c-came really.”

Unsure what else to say, Gerard quietly said, “I’m so sorry Bert.”

With eyes full of loss and the toll of a life ruled by alcohol and drugs Bert whispered his voice completely cracking now, “It’s n-n-not y-y-your f-f-fault G-G-Gerard. I c-c-chose m-m-my own p-p-path. I h-h-hope you f-f-found what y-y-you c-c-came for.”

Gerard stepped away from the dejected looking Bert. Bizarrely, he felt a little sorry for him. Bert had always been a self-destructive motherfucker who had tried to take others with him. Gerard had been a willing partner in the booze, the weed and the pills, he had his own self-destructive streak. But Bert had had no right to take Gerard’s virginity without his full consent. No doubt other men had shared the same fate before the drink and drugs took their toll on Bert. In some way it seemed fitting that karma had chosen to have its way with him. However, there had been some genuine friendship, affection and good, shared memories before Bert had raped him. There was a pang of regret that life had taken away even those tiny remnants of the sweet teenager Gerard once thought he knew. 

Gerard was so wrapped up in those thoughts of what had been before Bert forced himself on him, that he wasn’t looking where he was going. “Oh, sorry!” he uttered without looking up as he bumped into someone.

“Still the pathetic loser pining after McCracken then Way?” He recognised the sneer in the voice – Ronnie Radke. Gerard knew this was another, “man-up” conversation.

*Five minutes later*  
Frank sidled up to Gerard who was looking decidedly uncomfortable. He slipped an arm protectively around his waist. In the most pointed way he could, he let his head rest against his husband’s chest, ensuring his ring glinted in the ridiculous prom-like lighting. He wanted this asshole who had made Gerard’s life hell for four years, and his hell for one year, to know the two of them were together.

“Sorry Ronnie, “(not that he was in the slightest) “I need to speak with my husband for a minute.” Frank yanked Gerard away from Ronnie and towards the bar. “Looks like you needed rescuing!”

“You could say that! Still the same overbearing arrogant dickhead.” Gerard paused to take a sip of his beer. His eyes twinkled as a mischievous thought crossed his mind, erasing all thoughts of Bert and Ronnie. “I might have had one of these too many you know.” He waved his beer bottle in Frank’s face. “I think I might need to go to the Nurse’s room for a little lie down. You have to come with me to make sure I get there Ok.”

“Hmm, not sure I remember where that is. Never went there in four years!” Frank beamed a wicked grin, knowing full well that there were times when he had almost lived in that room after being picked on and beaten up by one of the cliques. He held out his arm for Gerard to take.

Gerard took his arm, placing a peck on his cheek as they casually exited the hall. Once they were safely out of sight of the reunion, both men broke into a run, scurrying down the halls like a pair of horny teenagers.

“Mr Way, I think you have watched one too many high school movies!”

“Perhaps Mr Way – but I don’t see you complaining. Besides I never got to do shit like this when I was here!”

“Me neither. Hurry up old man! You’ve got me all worked up just at the thought of it.”

Giggling as they shut the door behind them, they fell on each other. Mouths clashed, tongues hungrily feeling their way along bottom lips, urgently forcing their way into mouths and wrapping around each other.

Trying to move as one unit, they manoeuvred themselves away from the door. Coming up for air, Frank motioned towards it with his head. Gerard looked around for something to wedge under the handle of the door. Once a chair was in place to secure the door, he crossed back to his husband. 

“Now, where were we” he murmured. “Oh, uh uh.” Gerard’s hands tangled in Frank’s hair as he drew him back in for another kiss. 

Frank’s hands found their way to Gerard’s ass, pulling him tighter in as he squeezed. This time it was Gerard who drew breath. “Bed or wall?”

“Wall.” Frank pushed him back against the only wall space in the tiny office. Bodies pressed closely together they could feel each other’s hard cocks.

Breaking from the embrace, Frank sank to his knees, one hand palmed Gerard through his jeans, the other was trying to undo his belt. Having succeeded he undid the button, then the zipper finally pushing both jeans and boxers swiftly down Gerard’s thighs, exposing his cock. Frank breathed in that heady smell he loved so much before leaning in close and ever so gently letting out his hot breath over the head of the shaft.

Gerard moaned softly at the sensation of Frank’s breath. His hands cupped Frank’s head as he felt a tongue brush against his slit, then slowly circle its way around the head of his cock. At the same time, he sensed a hand encircle the base of his shaft, ready to begin that rhythmic stroking his husband was so skilled at.

While Frank continued to lick, to suck, to stroke, Gerard arched back, little whimpers escaping his lips as his breathing quickened until he was outright panting. Frank responded by quickening his actions, knowing just how to bring Gerard right to the very edge before slowing the pace back down to prolong the pleasure and the anticipation. He repeated the process, feeding off the way that his husband trembled at his touch. This time he kept right on, finally tipping Gerard over the edge, continuing to hold him in his mouth, drawing every last drop out of his convulsing husband as Gerard came down Frank’s throat.

Deftly, the second Frank pulled off, Gerard switched positions, using the movement to shake off the tiredness sweeping over his body. They had been together for so many years that he knew it wouldn’t take Frank long to cum. He would have been stroking himself with his free hand while Gerard’s cock was in his mouth. Gerard took Frank’s whole length in his mouth. His head bobbed up and down working Frank into that final frenzy from where there would be no holding back. He cocked his head upwards just at the final moment, so that he could behold the beauty of Frank’s face as it contorted in those sweet seconds of agony and ecstasy.

After Gerard had found some paper towel to clean them both up, they slumped down against the wall. Snuggled together. Basking in the afterglow.

“Best way to spend a high school reunion. Can I get a repeat performance when it’s yours?”

“Nah…That’s got to be under the bleachers!”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading. I would love to hear comments from my lovely readers and will always try to reply. You can post here or on Twitter (@morgawse_hp).
> 
> Also watch out for a couple of new multi-chapter fics that will be appearing over the next couple of weeks. One might even re-introduce a Gerard and Frank you've already met if you are reading the whole series.


End file.
